Stand-up flexible container with top and bottom handles

ABSTRACT

A stand-up pouch having a bottom flap with a segment of unsealed flaps which prevent full expansion of the gusseted bottom panel so as to bear the weight of the pouch when placed upon a surface.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates flexible containers fordispensing a flowable material therefrom. More particularly, the presentinvention relates to flattenable containers constructed from flexiblematerial with features allowing the container to be placed in anupright, standing position when full, and flattened when empty. Thecontainer further includes grip sections at both the top and bottomwhich allows a user to easily dispense a flowable material from withinthe container.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Flattenable, flexible containers are popular in packaging materials dueto being economical in their mass production while still attaining theadvantages of having superior structural integrity. When a flexiblecontainer is dropped, the tensile strength of the flexible materialresists breakage and all material remains within. Moreover, the flexiblematerial may be of the type that is impermeable to oxygen so as tomaintain freshness and reduce spoilage of any materials sealed withinthe container.

One disadvantage of such flattenable, flexible containers is that asthey are emptied, they can become difficult to handle, particularly ifthey are so flexible that they tend to collapse upon themselves as theyare emptied.

Various attempts to solve the above disadvantage have been made in thepast, such as seen in U.S. Pat. No. 8,348,509 to Wilkes et. al.(“Wilkes”). Wilkes discloses a flexible stand-up container whichincludes a pouch made from a panel structure having gusseted sidepanels, a top opening comprising a rigid fitment, a top handle made fromthe panels as they are pressed together, and a lower hand grip formed bya U-shaped slit cut into a flap made from the pressed panels. Althoughthe disclosed container may make distribution of its contents easier,its complex configuration involves its own unique set of disadvantages.

For example, the Wilkes panel structure configuration requires at leastfour sheets/rolls of flexible material. This causes production of thedisclosed container to be less economical and more complex thancontainers having less individual panels due to material requirementsand the number of steps in the manufacturing process. The individualgusseted side panels also allow for more bending and folding of thecontainer panels as the container is emptied. This can be a disadvantagewhen dispensing the material contents from the container due to thecontents potentially getting stuck in the folds of collapsing panels.The disclosed panel structure configuration also requires seams at theperipheries of each of the adjoining four panels which can negativelyaffect the container's overall structural integrity. It is therefore anobject of the present invention to address the above disadvantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention addresses the above drawbacks of prior artstand-up flexible containers by providing a stand-up flexible,flattenable container configuration made from plastic sheeting thatutilizes a minimum number of individual panels. In an embodiment, aflattenable pouch is constructed from two panels of plastic sheetingsecured by a seam along each side periphery, and a bottom gusset whichmay be secured by a seam of any desired configuration including straightseam, K seam or doyen seam, for example. Two bottom flaps extend fromthis bottom seam and overlap the bottom gusset. The flaps are sealed attheir distal ends to form a grip section with the option of a handleopening which may be formed as a cut-out. On the opposite top end of thepouch, a top opening may be sealed with a component (e.g., a spout ornozzle) installed therewith or the opening may be secured to a zipper orother closure element. A pair of connected, spaced legs may extend fromthe top opening and sealed together to allow for a handle opening to becut or otherwise formed therein.

The stand-up flexible, flattenable container configuration disclosedherein may be manufactured from one, two, or three panel sections offlexible material which may be cut or otherwise formed from plasticsheets which may be supplied in rolls for the manufacturing process, forexample. Briefly described, in an embodiment having three panels, afirst panel forms the bottom gusset, a second panel forms the frontpanel and corresponding flaps, and a third panel forms the rear paneland corresponding flaps. The three panels are then pressed together by aplated heat sealer. In an embodiment utilizing two panels, a first panelfrom a first roll forms both the front and rear panels by folding thefirst panel into two halves at a crease. A slit is then cut along thecrease to form the front and rear panels. A second panel from a secondroll is folded in half and inserted and positioned front and rear panelsto create the bottom gusset and overlapping flaps from which the bottomhandle is formed. The front, rear and bottom panels are then pressedtogether by a plated heat sealer. When one panel is used, the panel froma single roll is folded multiple times to form four distinct sections bythree creases. The multi-folded panel is then pressed by a plate heatsealer at the proper locations and then trimmed to form the flexiblecontainer.

Additional objects, advantages and novel features of the presentinvention will be set forth in part in the description which follows,and will in part become apparent to those in the practice of theinvention, when considered with the attached figures.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES

The accompanying drawings form a part of this specification and are tobe read in conjunction therewith, wherein like reference numerals areemployed to indicate like parts in the various views, and wherein:

FIG. 1A is a front, plan view of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 1B is a side elevational view, partly in cross-section, of theembodiment of FIG. 1 in the unassembled condition;

FIG. 1C is a side elevation view of the bottom panel seen in FIGS. 1A,B;

FIG. 2 is a side, perspective view of another embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a close-up, perspective view of an end of the embodiment ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a schematic, plan view of a method for manufacturing anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6A is a perspective view of a step of the manufacturing methodutilizing three plastic sheet rolls;

FIG. 6B is a perspective view of a second step of the manufacturingmethod utilizing three plastic sheet rolls;

FIG. 6C is a perspective view of a third step of the manufacturingmethod utilizing three plastic sheet rolls;

FIG. 7A is a perspective view of a step of the manufacturing methodutilizing two plastic sheet rolls;

FIG. 7B is a perspective view of a second step of the manufacturingmethod utilizing two plastic sheet rolls;

FIG. 7C is a perspective view of a third step of the manufacturingmethod utilizing two plastic sheet rolls;

FIG. 7D is a perspective view of a fourth step of the manufacturingmethod utilizing two plastic sheet rolls;

FIG. 8A is a perspective view of a step of the manufacturing methodutilizing one plastic sheet roll;

FIG. 8B is a perspective view of a second step of the manufacturingmethod utilizing one plastic sheet/roll; and

FIG. 8C is a simplified side view of the embodiment of FIG. 8B in thepartially expanded condition.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding partsthroughout the several views. The exemplifications set out hereinillustrate currently preferred embodiments of the invention, and suchexemplifications are not to be construed as limiting the scope of theinvention in any manner.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to the drawings, there is seen in FIGS. 1A-C, 2 and 3 aflexible container embodiment referred to herein as the “container” andindicated generally by the reference numeral 10. This embodiment has apanel structure incorporating a front panel 16, rear panel 18, and agusseted bottom panel 20 defining a flattenable pouch 12. Pouch 12 has apouch opening 14 wherethrough contents may be inserted and removed fromthe interior of pouch 12.

One or more of the panels 16, 18 and gusseted bottom panel 20 are made(e.g., cut) from continuous webs or sheets (also referred to herein as“film” or “sheeting”) of generally thin, flexible material which allowsthe pouch to collapse upon itself into a partially or completelyflattened condition when empty. The panels 16, 18 and gusseted bottompanel 20 each have an inner surface 16′, 18′ and 20′, respectively,which make contact with any contents within pouch 12, and an oppositeouter surface 16″, 18″ and 20″, respectively, which are exposed to thesurrounding environment. Portions or all of panels 16, 18 and gussetedbottom panel 20 may be transparent so contents within pouch 12 may beseen from outside container 10. Moreover, labels may be applied toand/or illustrations and/or text may be imprinted directly on one ormore of the inner and/or outer surfaces 16″, 18″ and 20″.

One example of a flexible material that may be used to manufacture thepanels is plastic which may be extruded or otherwise formed into a filmwhich can be heat sealed together during manufacturing of container 10.Although heat sealing is the preferred method of affixing the panelstogether, other methods such as stitching or gluing may be used asdesired. Some examples of suitable materials from which the panels maybe formed include, but are not limited to, polyvinyl acetate, polyvinylchloride, saran, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, rubberhydrochloride, cellophane, paper, and aluminum foil. Depending on thenature of the intended contents, panel materials having certaincharacteristics may be selected (e.g., air tight and/or biocompatiblematerials).

In a preferred embodiment, a heat sensitive adhesive layer is applied toat least one surface of the plastic sheeting to allow for the heatsealing of one panel to another (or a single panel to itself afterfolding) as will be described in more detail below. The application ofthe adhesive layer to the plastic sheeting (e.g., by lamination,extrusion or rolling) is typically done prior to forming the plasticsheeting into a roll but may be performed at any point in themanufacturing process prior to the heat sealing operation, as desired.The interior adhesive layer can be any suitable thermoplastic materialhaving a melting point lower than the plastic sheeting material.Examples of suitable adhesive layers include, but are not limited to, apolyamide, such as nylon; a polyester, such a polylactic acid; apolyolefin, such as polyethylene, polypropylene and the like; or apolyurethane-based material, and select copolymers including one or moreof the above. Additionally, adhesive layers having different meltingpoints may also be used on different parts of the panels to allow forseparate sealing operations during manufacturing of certain embodimentsof the invention as will be explained further below.

Front panel 16 and rear panel 18 are disposed with their respectiveinterior surfaces 16′, 18′ in facing relation to each other and arepreferably substantially the same or similar in their geometry (e.g.,size, shape, thickness, etc.). Panels 16, 18 are sealed together alongtheir opposite side edges with side edges 16 a and 18 a sealed togetherand side edges 16 b and 18 b sealed together to form non-gusseted sideseams 22, 24, respectively.

Gusseted bottom panel 20 is secured to panels 16, 18 by means of abottom seam 26 that extends between side seams 22, 24. Gusseted bottompanel 20 may fold upon itself and extend into the center cavity of pouch12 when empty. When pouch 12 is filled, the panel 20 expands with thefold bowing outwardly under the pressure of the filling contents suchthat the unfolded, expanded gusseted bottom panel 20 forms a baseallowing container 10 to be placed on a horizontal surface in a stable,upright orientation.

In a preferred embodiment, a section of unsealed flap sections may forma bottom wall panel when fully expanded and also restrict gussetedbottom panel 20 from fully expanding so that bottom panel 20 does notbear the entire weight of the content of pouch 12 as is explained morefully below.

It should be appreciated that additional panels of flexible material(not shown) may be used in the manufacture of container 10 to create amulti-walled pouch 12 (otherwise known as “bag-in-bag”, “double-wallbag”, or “triple-wall bag”).

Each of the seams 22, 24, and 26 may be welded through heat andpressure, for example, with a heat sealer plate of a seaming iron or ahot roller (not shown). Two or more stand seals 28 may be incorporatedinto the side peripheries of the excess material of panels 16, 18 belowbottom seam 26. Stand seals 28 adjoin the excess front and rear panelsso as to add further stability to container 10 when placed in thestanding position described above. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1A-Cand 2, bottom seam 26 is configured as what is known in the art as a “K”seam although other seam configurations may be formed as desired (e.g.,curved seams which provide a different aesthetic and also avoid theformation of sharp interior corners which could potentially trapmaterial within pouch 12).

As seen best in the unassembled side view of FIG. 1B, at least one butpreferably both the front and rear panels 16, 18 extend beyond and belowthe position of bottom seam 26 to define respective flap sections 30 and32. Flap sections 30, 32 are adjoined along a seam 13 adjacent theirrespective free ends 30′, 32′ to form a seam grip section 13. A seal 15is formed so that the flap sections 30, 32 extending between seal 26 andseal 15 define an unsealed section 29 having a length L₂ (FIGS. 1A and1B). Grip section 13 may be defined by a single seam 31 spanning atleast part of but preferably the entire length of both flap sections 30,32 (e.g., welded via a heat sealer plate) and which is sufficiently wideto ensure flap sections 30, 32 remain joined. It should be appreciated,however, that grip section 13 may also be defined by multiple parallelor non-parallel seams spanning part of or the full width of flapsections 30, 32 and the seam(s) 31 may be located on either or bothsides of handle 34 (described below).

An opening forming a bottom handle 34 may be cut or otherwise formed outof grip section 13 to allow a user to pass the fingers of one handthrough bottom handle 34 while using their other hand to grasp the tophandle (described below) so as to more easily tip container 10 todispense the contents through top opening 14. Bottom handle 34 may becut via any desired cutting device such as, for example, a hydraulic diecutter. When container 10 is positioned in its upright, standingcondition, flap sections 30, 32 will lie flat and against the gussetedbottom panel 20 although portions of there may extend beyond panel 20depending on the length of flap sections 30, 32.

In a preferred embodiment, the length “L₁” of folded gusseted bottompanel 20 is greater than or equal to the length “L₂” of the unsealedsection 29 of each flap section 30, 32 so that when the container isfully expanded, the flap section 30, 32 extend to a coplanarrelationship to form a single wall for resting container 10 on a surfacedirectly beneath the gusseted bottom panel 20. With L₂ being less thanL₁, gusseted bottom panel 20 will be prevented from opening to its fullyexpanded condition thereby causing flap sections 30, 32 extending fromeither side of seam line 15 to bear the weight of the container 10rather than the gusseted bottom panel 20. A rupture of seam line 15 isnot as critical as would be a rupture of seam line 26 since a rupture ofseam line 26 would result in leakage of the pouch contents whereas arupture of seam line 15 would not result in leakage of the contents norwould it prevent normal usage of container 10 as described herein.

Flap sections 30, 32 may be trimmed into any desired outline such asalong dotted lines DL₁ and DL₂ seen in FIG. 1A.

At the opposite end of container 10, either one of but preferably bothfront and rear panels 16, 18 extend beyond and above seals 40 a and 40 bwhich affix panels 16 and 18 together at these seal locations andbetween which remains unsealed to define open top 14 (FIG. 1A). Thesections of panels 16 and 18 extending above seals 40 a, 40 b formrespective flap sections 33, 35 (FIG. 1B). Flap sections 33, 35 areadjoined by a seam 41 adjacent free ends 33′, 35′ thereof, respectively,to form a grip section 39 (e.g., welded via a heat sealer plate). Anopening forming a top handle 42 may be cut out of grip section 39. Auser may grasp top handle 42 when carrying container 10 in an uprightorientation and also when dispensing contents therefrom, in which casethe user may also grasp bottom handle 34 with their other hand tofacilitate tipping container 10 as explained above.

As shown in FIGS. 2-4 a rigid fitment 44 having an opening 46 mayoptionally be sealed to top opening 14 to facilitate the loading anddispensing of material into and out of pouch 12 of container 10. Theexternal surface of opening 46 may include mating threads to allow a cap48 to be removably secured to fitment 44 and seal pouch 12 althoughother closure and dispensing mechanisms may be sealed to top opening 14(e.g., heat seal closure, slider, hook and loop mechanism, or zip-type,etc.).

As shown in FIGS. 5 through 6C, reference numeral 100 generallydesignates an embodiment of a method of manufacturing container 10 usingthree rolls/sheets of plastic sheeting. To initiate method 100, threerolls/sheets of plastic sheeting 104, 106, and 108 are unwound fromrespective spindles and sent in a first flow direction 102 although itis understood the various spindle locations and angular relation to oneanother may vary as required. After traveling a certain distance, firstplastic sheeting 104 (which will form the bottom panel 20) enters a“folding” area that contains a V-shaped board 110 that folds the firstplastic sheeting 104/20 along longitudinal axis L to form a folded edge20′ (FIG. 6A). After being folded, the folded first plastic sheetsection 104 meets with second and third plastic sheeting 106, 108 (whichwill form front and rear panels 16 and 18, respectively), which arealigned in parallel, spaced relation and originate from the other twoplastic sheeting rolls 106, 108, respectively. The folded first plasticsheeting 104/20 is then positioned between the aligned second and thirdplastic sheeting 106/16, 108/18. As discussed above, this alignmentshould be such that the length L₂ of the unsealed section of flaps 30,32 is less than the length L₁ of the folded bottom panel 20 formed fromfirst plastic sheeting 104 (as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B). Each roll ofplastic sheeting 104, 106, and 108 may be continuously unwound either bya driving roll or by pulling from an auxiliary drive (not shown).

Once the folded first plastic sheet section 104/20 is properly situated,a configuration of ring rollers 114 presses the three web sections104/20, 106/16, 108/18 together. The pressed web sections 104/20,106/16, 108/18 then move to a heat sealer plate section 118 (i.e., via aseaming iron). Heat sealer 118 is designed to seal the folded firstplastic sheet section 104/20 to both the second and third plastic sheetsections 106/16, 108/18 and form the bottom seam 26, which createsgusseted bottom panel 20. Sealing the plastic sheet sections in thismanner also creates the bottom flap sections 30, 32. Heat sealer 118 mayalso create one or more stand seals 28 (FIG. 1) by sealing the secondand third plastic sheet sections 106/16 and 108/18 at one or more apoints along side seams 27 (FIG. 1A). Notches (not shown) may be cutfrom folded panel 12 at the location of stand seals 26 to allow panelinner surface 16′ to directly adhere to second panel inner surface 18′.

Heat sealer 118 also seals side peripheries of both the second and thirdplastic sheet sections 106/16, 108/18 to form non-gusseted side seams22, 24 and complete pouch 12. Heat sealer 118 further seals the firstside of the aligned second and third plastic sheet sections to form gripsection 32. Heat sealer 118 may further seal rigid fitment 44 betweenseals 40 a and 40 b. It should be appreciated that heat sealer 118 mayseal each of these seams sequentially (not necessarily in the orderdiscussed above) or simultaneously and it may be one uniform device(e.g., heat plate) or a configuration of multiple devices. It shouldfurther be appreciated that one or more additional rolls of plasticsheet of flexible material (not shown) may be incorporated into themanufacturing method to produce a multi-walled pouch 12 (otherwise knownas “bag-in-bag”, “double-wall bag”, or “triple-wall bag”) as mentionedabove.

As shown by referencing FIG. 5 in view of FIGS. 7A through 7D, anotherembodiment of the manufacturing method may incorporate two rolls/sheetsof plastic sheet 104, 106. In this embodiment, the second and thirdplastic sheet sections 106, 108 originate from single plastic sheet roll106. At juncture J of the manufacturing process (FIG. 6), a cuttingdevice would be used to slice plastic sheet roll 106 along crease 107.After being sliced, plastic sheet roll 106 transforms into the secondand third plastic sheet sections 106/16, 108/18. Similar to themanufacturing method embodiment discussed above, first plastic sheetsection 104/20 is folded by a folding machine and then pushed betweenthese newly formed and aligned second and third plastic sheet sections106/16, 108/18 (FIG. 8C). Heat sealer 118 then forms container 10 (FIG.7D) by creating the proper seams and, if desired, seals in rigid fitment44.

As shown by referencing FIG. 5 in view of FIGS. 8A-C, another embodimentof the manufacturing method may incorporate a single plastic sheetroll/sheet 104. In this embodiment, plastic sheet section 104 is foldedmultiple times by folding machine 110 into four distinct folds createdby three creases 107, 109, and 111. When being folded, first and secondcreases 107, 111 are aligned as seen best in FIG. 8C. In the flattenedcondition seen in FIG. 8B, center fold 109 is positioned such that thedistance between seal 26 and seal 13 is greater than the distancebetween fold 109 and seal 26. Once folded in this way, heat sealer 118then forms container 10 (FIG. 9B) by creating the proper seams and, ifdesired, seals in rigid fitment 44.

It should be understood the steps of the method presented herein do notnecessarily have to be in the order in which it is presented. It is alsounderstood that when an element is referred to as being “on”, “connectedto/with”, or “coupled to/with” another element, the element can bedirectly on, connected to/with or coupled to/with the other element orintervening elements may also be present.

While the invention has been described with reference to preferredembodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art thatvarious changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted forelements or components thereof to adapt to particular situations withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention. Therefore, it is intendedthat the invention not be limited to the particular embodimentsdisclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention,but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within thescope and spirit of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A pouch adapted to hold and dispense a quantityor liquid or granular material therefrom, said pouch comprising: a) afront panel having top, bottom and opposite side edges; b) a rear panelhaving top, bottom and opposite side edges, said opposite side edges ofsaid rear panel attached to said opposite side edges of said frontpanel; c) a gusseted bottom panel attached to and between said front andrear panels and having a length L1 when in the folded condition; d) saidfront panel including a bottom flap extending from the location wheresaid bottom panel attaches to said front and rear panels; e) said rearpanel including a bottom flap extending from the location where saidbottom panel attaches to said front and rear panels; f) a seal adjoiningsaid front panel bottom flap to said rear panel bottom flap, theportions of each of said bottom flaps located between said bottom paneland said seal being unattached, said unattached portion having a lengthL2 when in the folded condition, wherein L₁ is greater than L₂ such thatsaid unattached portion prevents the bottom panel from fully expandingand bears the weight of the contents of the pouch.